The Blue Lady Glass Collage - Re-purposed Bottle Bud Vase

Hello Everyone!
After playing around with my glass transfer sheets this weekend, I was happy to discover that YES you can do collage with them!  Joy!!  Butterflies and blue hydrangea were cut out to surround the image of the dancer.

The re-purposed bottle once held a Starbucks latte.
I used 1/4 sheet of glass transfer paper, so this project cost less than $2.00.

I have loved doing collage since I was in middle school and bringing this technique to glass is like a dream come true...lol.  When I was growing up, the tiny room below our staircase, that was supposed to be used for storage, turned into my Secret Room.  The walls and the ceiling were COVERED in magazine cut outs, placed carefully along with quotes and photos of friends.  Those were the days...endless hours of uninterrupted creative flow... 

Anyway, my Tuesday Tutorial will cover this project in detail, including the glass painting.

The Graphics Fairy supplied all of my images.  She has TONS of scanned in vintage photos, postcards, advertisements- perfect for everything from scrapbooking to image transfers on fabric and wood, etc.

If you have never visited Graphics Fairy and you love vintage imagery, definitely go check it out.

You will be glad you did. 

I linked this post to The Graphics Fairy Monday Brag post! 



















Happy Crafting!

Tutorial Tuesdays- How to Make a Wine Bottle Votive

Ever wonder what to do with your empty wine and liquor bottles?  Sure you can put them in the recycling bin, but some bottles are so pretty, you don't want to throw them out.  I am going to show you how to put those lovely bottles to good use!

All you need is: a bottle cutter (I am currently using the G2 bottle cutter), a pot of boiling water, a large bowl of ice cold water, glass paint and an LED votive (I ordered my LEDs online)

I am going to upload a video demonstrating the glass cutting technique we use tomorrow, but I will also outline it here:

Quick Tip:  You can use candles with wine bottle votives, BUT, you have to have a small hole at the bottom of the bottle to let air in, or a vacuum is created and the candle will not stay lit.  If you have a candle in the wine bottle, the bottle becomes extremely hot, VERY FAST.  I prefer LEDs to avoid the heat.

First, wash your bottle and remove the labeling after soaking the bottles in hot water. It helps to use one of those green scrub sponges and rub the labels off.  Some of them will come right off.  For the labels that are really sticky, remove all the paper you can with your rough sponge and then dry it off and take Duck Tape to remove the remaining adhesive.  You just wind some tape around your fingers and tap and pull on the bottle.  Do not use a knife to remove the adhesive.  Acetone does not seem to do much good either.

If you are ready to cut your bottle, get a large pot of boiling water going. It needs to be a full rolling boil. Right beside it, get a large bowl of ice cold water ready.  It helps to have ice cubes floating around the bowl.  Have extra ice on hand!  You are stressing the glass so it will break evenly, so really hot and really cold water, both, are necessary.

Adjust your bottle cutter so that the sharp scoring edge sits where you would like it to sit.  You can take the bottom off the bottle OR you can take off the top, whichever you prefer.  I like cutting the bottom as it is more unique to keep the shape of the wine bottle.

The top arm swivels and moves up and down

When you score the bottle, score LIGHTLY.  You do not want to re-trace your score line or make it too deep, that will make the bottle crack unevenly when you stress it in the water.  You will hear a soft scoring sound as you turn the bottle against the sharp cutter.  Hold the bottle with the cutter attached in one hand (keeping the plug in the top of the bottle) and with the other hand, turn the bottle firmly against the scoring tool, twisting it slowly around.

This is a close up of the sharp scoring blade

To help make sure you do not overtrace your score line, mark your bottle with a sharpie to show where the score line starts and mark a line just before your start line.  When you are turning the bottle, it is difficult to see the start line and you do NOT want to go past it.

Once it is scored, dip your bottle in the boiling water for 10 - 20 seconds.  Take it out and dip it in the cold water for 10-20 seconds and keep doing this, back and forth, until the bottom of the bottle pops off. When you have a great score line, it literally pops right off and the edges of the bottle are smooth!

Right now, I have my wonderful husband scoring my bottles as he has the strength to hold the bottle firmly while twisting it against the cutter.  I am able to score a bottle, but have a hard time not re-tracing my score lines.   I am breaking 7 out of every 10 bottles, lol, but the ones that work out look so cool!

Check out my video to see the LED light in action after I decorate my bottle. 

Watch how I learned to cut a glass bottle. 

I will do a glass painting tutorial very soon...

Happy Crafting!

Happy Independence Day, U.S.A.!!!

For fun, check out the amazing Etsy treasuries with a USA theme today.  It is so interesting to see what makes other crafters think of the USA this 4th of July!
Here is a good one...
http://www.etsy.com/treasury/MTI5ODc5ODl8NDA5OTgyMjYx/happy-4th?index=8

 Happy Crafting and Happy 4th of July, Everyone!

Tutorial Tuesday- 4th of July Cake

Hello Everyone!
In celebration of the 4th of July, I made this fun and whimsical cake.  It is easy to make- I promise!  I mapped it out, step-by-step.  Surprise everyone at your Independence Day party with your mad crazy cake baking skills.

Quick Tip-  you can do this same checker technique in black and white to make an Alice in Wonderland cake!

What you need to get started:
1 box of White cake mix
1 box of french vanilla pudding mix
4 eggs
3/4 cup oil
3/4 cup of milk
Sky Blue Wilton food coloring (or whatever brand you like)
Rose Red Wilton food coloring (again, whatever brand you like)
Two separate large bowls (to separate the cake batter for mixing into red and blue sections)
wax paper- cut into 2 8x8 sections
9x13 baking pan
Bakers Joy spray or Pam to grease the pan.  I prefer Bakers Joy.
A large serrated bread or cake knife

This recipe makes for a very moist cake- just use these ingredients and follow the rest of the instructions on the box.  Be sure to use WHITE cake and not just vanilla so the colors show up well.  I used french vanilla cake and used whole eggs (yolks are so very yellow) so was a challenge to get a true blue and red.  In fact, the blue section of my cake looks a bit green in some sections.  Oh well, I'm not perfect!  lol...I will just say I am going for a shabby chic look.

Anyway, after you prepare the batter in your mixer, divide it in half.  Put 1/2 of it in a bowl and mix red coloring into it.  Mix blue food coloring in the other bowl of batter.

In your 9x13 pan, spray it with Bakers Joy on the bottom and sides and then put the 2 8x8 wax sheets in the pan so that two separate compartments are created- see photo. You want the wax to cover the bottom of the cake and the middle separation, but that is it.  Make sure the compartments are pretty tight against the edges of the pan to prevent the two colors of batter from mixing.  Give the wax another light coat of non-stick spray.

The wax paper will probably be tall in the middle- that is OK! 

Then, pour your red and blue batter into the separate sections.  This is a little tricky as the wax paper likes to flip over, so maybe get someone to hold the wax paper still while your pour.  Do not overlap batter!  It will turn purple immediately.  After you pour the batter in each side and smooth them out, folding the paper down in the middle a few times makes that middle paper separator more sturdy.

Place into the oven to bake. If you use Bakers Joy, the sides should separate slightly from the pan when the cake is ready.  Use a toothpick to double-check.  I baked these at 325 for 35 minutes in a Wilton 9x13x2 non-stick pan.

After taking the cake out, cool in pan for 5 - 10 minutes.  Then place the sections on a wire rack- see photo- use a large spatula to gently lift them up so can get your hand under the cake and gently lift it out.  It is OK if they wax paper is still stuck to them. (Be careful as they are still hot.  If it seems like they will fall apart or break, leave them in the pan to cool longer before removing).

 Let the cakes cool the rest of the way on the wire rack.  Cover them lightly with saran wrap or foil as they are cooling so they do not dry out.  I put mine in the fridge to speed up the process.

Once they are completely cool, cut each section in half- long ways.  Get out some foil or saran wrap to place the cakes on.   See photo.  Assemble the cakes in the checker pattern and trim with a long cake knife or bread knife so that the sides are even and the cake is square.  The cake will be a bit crumbly, so be gentle!

Put a bit of buttercream or whatever frosting you like between the layers so they sandwich together.  You can use jelly that has been simmered for a few minutes as well.

Then, put frosting all over the cake, giving it a good solid crumb coat (sealing in the cakes crumbs with frosting).  I used a rotating cake stand, but you can use whatever you have to get around the cake easily.  Put the crumb coated cake in the fridge until it slightly hardens or crusts- about 40 minutes in my fridge.

You can watch the video to see how I cut smoothed my crumb coat and put fondant on my cake.

 If you do not want to work with fondant, just cover the cake with white creamy icing once the crumb coat is firm!  The effect is still very cool.  You can use fresh strawberries and blueberries instead of sugar flowers!

Decorate as you wish.  I printed out a vintage Lady Liberty image from Graphics Fairy!  I also typed out Happy Birthday America in a fancy font and printed it out.  I used regular markers to add color to the banners and I attached these paper decorations with blue straws.  I added sugar flowers and sugar ruffles to the top.  Also, I wrapped a red ribbon around the cake.  You just take off the ribbon before serving.  You can do a fondant ribbon as well, but I ran out of time.  That will be another project...

 
 Happy 4th of July and Happy Crafting!

Wine Glass Painting Party at House Wine!

July 16th from 5-7pm I will be at House Wine teaching our 3rd monthly wine glass painting class (it is so much fun it is more like a little party than a class). 
The class fee is $25.00- that includes a large 16oz wine glass to paint, a glass of wine or sangria to enjoy while you are painting, all supplies and hands-on instruction.

We will also have re-purposed wine bottle votives and wine bottle vases available to paint if you already have plenty of wine glasses too!

This makes for a great evening with friends.  We have painted everything from unicorns to flowers to mountains and the Parthenon.  Call Kerry at House Wine at 512-925-1927 to make your reservation and please let her know if you would like to paint a wine glass or a wine bottle votive/vase as I cut them ahead of time. 
If you have never been to House Wine, it is a magical place- an old cottage turned into hip wine bar with a patio area and lots of trees located in downtown Austin.   Very laid back and friendly.  The wines are just as unpretentious as the people who work there and everything I have tried is delicious.

Happy Crafting and I hope to see you there!

Adorable Decorative Tiles

I am so excited about how these turned out.  I created these decorative tiles for my mom as it is her birthday today.  She loves birds and owls, so I chose vintage images from Graphics Fairy and transferred them onto tiles with my inkjet Lazertran paper.  The tiles were left overs given to me for various craft projects. 
Visit home improvement stores to see if they have discontinued tiles they could give away or hop on craigslist to see if anyone is giving away free tiles left over from remodeling projects.
After I decorated the tiles with glass paint and the images, I attached grosgrain ribbon with hot glue to the backs of the tiles so they can hang on the wall.  You can also place tiles on plate display holders and set them on counters or shelves.  I am a huge fan of iridescent blue glass paint, so I painted each tile with a layer of this paint for a more finished effect. 
You can download vintage images perfect for a bathroom (vintage images of mermaids?) or a kids room (ballerinas and fairies?) and do a mini art installation for a few dollars in paint, ribbon and tile.




Happy Crafting!

 

Etsy Treasuries Make For Great Inspiration

 

Etsy Treasuries are like miniature themed art galleries.  If you have never checked out Etsy and you love handmade, original artwork, baked goods and bath products, definitely go to etsy.com and take a look around.  Sellers from all around the world have their own online shops here and you can search for just about anything.  If you are looking for creative inspiration, check out their treasuries in the BUY section of Etsy.  There are hundreds of treasuries to browse through.

I have an Etsy shop where I sell my sugarcrafted cupcake and cake decorations and my white sugar blossoms were featured in this treasury.  I love how whimsical it is!

Happy Crafting!

Darling Upcycled Fairy Vase- Dream, Imagine and Create

Dream.  Imagine. Create.  Three of my most favorite things to do!

If you are crafty and have never visited The Grahics Fairy, definitely go check out her amazing blog full of free vintage images.  That is where I downloaded this ADORABLE little girl.  She could bring a smile to anyone's face.

I upcycled a peanut butter jar for this project. After removing the labels and washing the jar thoroughly, the fairy and the engraving banner were adhered to the glass by using a glass transfer sheet.   I then decorated the rest of the jar with glass paint, adding stars and the words Dream Imagine and Create.  I even put a coat of iridescent blue glass paint over the pasted images to make them shine and protect them. (My Lazertran Ink Jet Printer Transfer Paper finally arrived and I have been going glass transfer crazy. It is fantastic!)

Thick twine was wound around the opening so the vase can hang on a large decorative hook.  It would look great with a candle instead of flowers, but I would remove the twine if I put a candle in the jar.

Anyway, any image can be printed and transferred to glass, metal or wood. I will have a short video tutorial on how to use this crafting product in the next few days.  I bought my paper through Dick Blick Art Supply Store online as I could not find the paper locally.  Lazertran also has transfer paper for fabric!

Woah mama I am excited!

I have discovered that the images transfer well to clean glass and a very flat surface.  If the surface is too round (like a wine glass) or has edges the image would wrap around, it does not adhere as well.  I found that out with the dark pink IKEA vase.  It looks OK, but the edges slightly have lifted off of the glass where it wraps around the sides.  Also I originally had the fairy girl in a larger size, but the image would not adhere to the glass where the glass tapered in toward the opening of the jar. I had to cut the image down.

Also, the Lazertran Ink Jet Transfer sheets are not to be used on items that will be eaten on or handled a lot.  I believe there is another type of transfer sheet for that and I intend to find it...
Happy Crafting!

Make Your Own Spa Salt Scrub

I adore bath and spa products.  When I have had a rotten day, the right products can literally wash away my stress and give me fresh perspective.  The perfect bath can set my world right!

Buying bath products can get pretty expensive, so I found a way to make a homemade salt scrub that is just as fantastic as the scrubs from Origins or Bath and Body Works.  You can do it too!  I added notes about where to get some of the ingredients.  I am in NO WAY compensated by any of the companies I mention.

Here is the recipe:

• Dead Sea Salts and/or Epsom Salt

You can buy salts at so many places.  You can get them locally at stores like Sun Harvest or Whole Foods, but you can get them less expensively at Mountain Rose Herbs online.  They are only around $5.00 per pound at Mountain Rose.

• Almond Oil-  (so good for your skin and a light fragrance to it)  Mountain Rose's Almond Oil is only $6.00 per 8oz!

• Grapeseed Oil (I love how light this oil is)

• A plastic or glass container:

I re-use gelato containers to hold my scrubs because they are food-safe durable plastic jars that will not wear down over time or break in the tub.  You can buy these containers brand-new as well.  Look for PET jars online.   PET is commonly recycled, and has the number 1 as its recycling symbol.  You can purchase them at Natures Garden or SKS Bottles.

• Fragrance-  Optional- You add just around a 1/2 teaspoon per cup of oil and salt.  Avoid fragrance if you have sensitive skin!

I use fragrances from Natures Garden because they are phalate free and smell fantastic.  The combination I use in this recipe is Blood Orange and Rosemary Mint that has peppermint and spearmint notes in it.  It smells like the salt scrub from Origins!  Their fragrances last a long time and are only around $3.00 per 1 oz. bottle.  Also you can buy AMAZING essential oils from Mountain Rose Herbs- an incredible company.  Buy Peppermint, Spearmint, Rosemary and Orange Blossom oils.

You can make your scrub with a combination of Epsom Salts and Dead Sea Salts or add some finer grain salt for a finer scrub.  You can add a lot of salt or just a little, depending on how abrasive you want your scrub.  I like a LOT of salt.  The oils and scent will stay on your skin adding moisture and a glow.   I would not use this on your face or any other delicate areas.

You can also add big spoon-fulls to your bath for a wonderful salt soak.  Dab some on a back loofah and scrub away...Ahhhhh....

I spent around $40.00 for ALL of my ingredients and still have around 2lbs of salt left and my fragrances are hardly touched.  You can make it even less expensively if you use just Epsom Salt.  The oils go more quickly, but I have made more than 48oz of scrub.   One 21oz jar of scrub RETAIL from Origins is $32.00. 


Happy Crafting!